Keep the Fire Burning

Monika Litzinger explored individual, societal, and planetary exhaustion through participatory research using fire as a physical and conceptual prompt. While gathered around a physical fire, participants were invited to reflect on the elusive nature of exhaustion as they burn through their performance-driven mindsets. The safe and communal space kept the exchange of diverse perspectives from reaching a definitive conclusion on the experience of exhaustion and its societal implications. These dynamics have been translated into an interactive digital installation that requires visitors to keep the fire burning through actions like blowing, talking, making noise, or shouting. This active engagement fuels the affect of the installation, opening reflection on the intensity and duration of the human capacity to burn.